1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to watercraft and, more particularly, to expandable watercraft transportable by trailer.
2. Description of Related Art
Recreational watercraft are in popular use on today's lakes and rivers. Recreational watercraft include small craft such as rowboats, low-powered fishing boats, high-powered boats for pulling water skiers, and the like. Other recreational watercraft, which may be classified as large watercraft, include houseboats with facilities sometimes found in manufactured homes used on dry land. Still other watercraft, classified as intermediate-sized watercraft, and which may be referred to as camper watercraft, provide facilities analogous to those found in camping tents and trailers. These camper watercraft, which may comprise pontoons mounted on an underside of a deck structure, attempt to strike a balance between a large size and a small size. The large size may be preferred for stability when in use on water, while a small size may be preferred for convenience in transporting the watercraft on a highway or storing the watercraft in a garage. Generally, an intermediate-sized watercraft small enough to be transported on a highway has pontoons spaced closely enough together that the watercraft does not enjoy a high degree of stability on water. Conversely, an intermediate-sized watercraft large enough to be stable on water may be too large to be conveniently transported by trailer.
In an attempt to compromise between the conflicting requirements of stability on water and ease of transport on land, Valliere, U.S. Pat. No. 6,003,458 describes an expandable pontoon boat that is retractable into a configuration suitable for trailering and expandable to provide additional passenger room. The Valliere invention includes three passenger hull shells and three pontoon assemblies as well as a rack gear mechanism, drive motor, and slip clutch that are used to retract the pontoon assemblies. Another compromise is described in Stokes, U.S. Pat. No. 6,164,238, which discloses a lightweight folding boat having dual hulls that are capable of being folded together, one on top of another, for transport by trailer. Neither of these devices satisfies a need for a low-cost camper watercraft that can be conveniently converted from a form transportable by trailer to a form that provides stable operation on water.